Wednesday, December 24, 2025

Middle East

Israel’s president cancels trip to world climate summit due to security concerns

Israeli President Isaac Herzog decided to cancel his participation in the COP29 climate change conference in the Azerbaijani capital Baku due to “security concerns”, his office has announced

US denial of Gaza ‘genocide’ makes it complicit in Israeli war crimes: Hamas

The Palestinian resistance group Hamas has strongly condemned the recent statements made by the US Department of State, which denied genocide and the forced displacement of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by Israel.

Israel’s actions in Gaza ‘consistent with characteristics of genocide’: UN committee

A report by a United Nations special committee says Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war and policies and practices in the Gaza Strip that may amount to a "possibility of genocide".

Lebanese officials study US ceasefire plan

The Israeli military has conducted air raids on the suburbs of Beirut as Lebanese officials reviewed a US proposal for a ceasefire.

Saudi Arabia scales back Neom plans to focus on sports

Riyadh has scaled back some of its ambitious plans for Neom, the megacity it is building in the northwest of the kingdom, to prioritise sporting events set to be hosted in the city in the coming years, according to Reuters.

Britain threatened with court-ordered ban on weapons exports to Israel

Two groups challenging the British government over its continued export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel say they will ask a judge to order a halt to all UK arms exports if the policy is not reversed.

EU’s top diplomat proposes suspension of ‘political dialogue with Israel’, citing Gaza, Lebanon wars

The EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, says that he has proposed to EU member states the banning of imports from illegal settlements and the suspension of political dialogue with Israel, citing Tel Aviv's many violations of international law in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

Leader advisor dismisses claims Iran has abandoned resistance as a “joke” 

Ali Larijani, a senior advisor to Iran's leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, on Friday flew from Damascus to Beirut to hold talks with Lebanese officials over the Israeli aggression on Lebanon and other regional issues. 

Senior advisor to Iran FM: No immediate plans to adjust military advisors in Syria

Ali Asghar Khaji, a Senior Advisor to Iran’s Foreign Minister, stated in an interview with RIA Novosti that Iran has not made any decision regarding a change in the number of its advisory forces in Syria.

Rights group accuses Israel of crimes against humanity over forced displacement of Gazans

Israel is using evacuation orders to pursue the “deliberate and massive forced displacement” of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, according to a report by Human Rights Watch, which announced the policy amounts to crimes against humanity.

UN Security Council condemns Israeli attacks on UNIFIL

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has condemned recent Israeli attacks on the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Trump, Biden discuss Ukraine, Middle East in White House

US President-elect Donald Trump said he discussed the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East with President Joe Biden during a meeting at the White House, which he stated was “really good".

Lebanon bombing victims’ Iran judgment overturned by US appeals court

A US appeals court has thrown out a $1.68 billion judgment against Iran's central bank that had been won by family members of troops killed and injured in the 1983 bombing of the American Marine Corps barracks in Beirut.

Trump taps Iran hawk Marco Rubio for secretary of state

US President-elect Donald Trump made official his choice to nominate Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of state on Wednesday, slotting his former rival into his administration’s top diplomatic role.

US charges CIA official with leaking document on Israeli attack on Iran

The United States has charged a man who worked for the CIA overseas with leaking a classified document last month that assessed Israeli preparations for an attack against Iran.

Erdogan says Turkey severed all relations with Israel

Ankara has cut all ties with Israel, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced

Iran strongly condemns Israeli official West Bank annexation comment 

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman has strongly condemned an Israeli cabinet minister’s statement regarding the annexation of the West Bank by the regime, calling it part of the regime's genocidal act.

US says to continue sending arms to Israel despite dire conditions in Gaza

The United States will not change its policy on weapons transfers to Israel even though the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip remains dire, the State Department has announced.

Trump picks hardliner Mike Huckabee as Israel’s envoy

US President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Mike Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas, to be his ambassador to Israel, putting a figure who has refuted the existence of the Palestinian people at the centre of US diplomacy with Israel amid its wars on Gaza and Lebanon.

UN official warns Israeli acts in Gaza ‘reminiscent of gravest international crimes’

The United Nations aid chief has highlighted the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, describing it as "a wasteland of rubble" where there are "acts reminiscent of the gravest international crimes".

Iran, Russia, Turkey censure Israeli crimes in West Asia

Tehran, Moscow and Ankara have condemned Israel's continuous atrocities in West Asia, calling for increased international endeavours to secure an "immediate and permanent" ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Yemen’s Houthis say conducted missile, drone attacks on US warships

US warships came under sustained missile and drone attack from Houthi fighters as they sailed off the coast of Yemen, the Pentagon has confirmed, with the Yemeni armed group claiming it attacked the US aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and two US destroyers.

US military says targeted ‘Iranian-backed’ fighters in Syria for a second day

The US military says it has carried out fresh air raids in Syria targeting “Iranian-aligned targets” following a recent rocket strike against American soldiers at a base in Syria’s northeastern Hasakah province.

At least 2,000 civilians killed in northern Gaza amid Israeli attacks

At least 2,000 civilians have been killed in northern Gaza amid a campaign of genocide and ethnic cleansing by Israel, the blockaded enclave’s media office has reported.

Qatar’s Emir orders cabinet reshuffle

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has appointed six new ministers in a major cabinet reshuffle.

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